Hello land gurus. A friend needs some urgent cash and has decided to sell me his 50*100 in a rapidly developing area in Mlolongo. The problem is that the land has a block title and he tells me that I will get a share certificate of Boma Estate, upon which I will get the title myself later. I have heard stories of people suffering and failing to get title deeds for land. My questions are:
- Has anyone here ever dealt with Boma Estate (Mlolongo)? How genuine is the company and how fast do they help in processing individual title deeds?
- Can any bank give me loans using a share certificate as a sign of ownership of some land?
- What are the chances of getting conned?
- This is my first land transaction, and I cant rely on my "gishagi" contacts to do deals in town.What documents must I have at the end of the transaction to ensure transfer of ownership?
NOTE: Ordinarily, I would not buy a piece of land with just a share certificate. However, I visited the area where the land is today and the developments were impressive. There are several projects by large companies such as Jamii Bora and Suraya...the land is between these two mega-projects.I look forward to building flats there in future if the deal goes well. Please advice a newbie in this tricky real estate sector. Thank you

I told the guy to process the title deed and I will meet the transfer costs. Until then, I am not going to buy the land without a valid title deed no matter how sweet the deal is. I just found out that those with share certificates do not appear anywhere as owners in the land registry, cant access loans from banks, may not have their building plans approved and encounter endless hustles in getting their title deed from the sacco which may take years of blood, sweat and tears. Having prime land that I cant use to get credit, cant build on and cant claim legal ownership coupled with an indefinite locking of funds is a nightmare I cant endure. Thanks though.

You should run... As fast as possible, as far as possible. Because
1. You cannot verify ownership. Unless the "friend" is someone you can vouch: you know him/her intimately, can trust him/her with something valuable (eg your spouse)
2. You can write off a loss in the worst case scenario eg in the case case of Mlolongo Brothers who sold airport land and issued 'share certificates' OR KMA Housing that bought land and constructed up to 70% before they were informed that the directors who signed off the land used forged docs (eventually losing the subsequent court case)

@mlennyma
Due diligence. Due diligence. Due diligence

Dealing in land without a tittle is akin to playing Russian roullete with your investments.
Kwanza that Mlolongo area is a hot bed for land con artists.
I dont know much about that boma entity but one woul expect that they process titles with ease if all is above board. Any inordinate delays or unclear road map to individual titles acquisition is a cause for alarm